Fresh crisis in Karnataka BJP as two ministers resign

Another 13 MLAs also announce their decision to quit the Assembly

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) first government in South India plunged into a fresh crisis on Wednesday with the resignation of two ministers in chief minister Jagadish Shettar's cabinet. Another 13 MLAs announced their decision to quit the Assembly.

State public works minister CM Udasi and energy minister Shobha Karandlaje, who are loyal supporters of former chief minister and Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) president BS Yeddyurappa, submitted their resignations to Shettar earlier in the day.

Shettar confirmed the development to reporters before leaving on a two-day tour of northern Karnataka that he had received the resignation letters, but would take a decision after “considering them”.

Udasi, Karandlaje and 11 other legislators, however, could not submit their resignation to Assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah as he was out of Bangalore.

Bopaiah’s absence led to high drama in his chambers as Udasi, Karandlaje and other MLAs waited for him for about an hour. The legislators were upset that Bopaiah was not present though he had been “informed about our coming to meet him today,” Udasi told reporters outside the Speaker’s chamber. Legislature secretary Omprakash was also not present at the time.

Assembly joint secretary Jayatheertha Galali told the MLAs “as joint secretary I can't accept it. Please come and submit resignations when the Speaker comes to office.”

Learning that neither Bopaiah nor the Assembly Legislature Secretary Omprakash were present when the MLAs arrived and waited for an hour, Yeddyurappa rushed there, insisting that the Shettar government had been reduced to a minority.

He lambasted Shettar, Bopaiah and the ruling BJP over the development. “This is a shameless government. The Speaker is not present even though he had been informed. He should be brought back within 24 hours,” Yeddyurappa thundered.

The KJP president also demanded that Shettar return to Bangalore immediately and quit as his government had lost the majority.

Yeddyurappa also appealed to the people to “gherao” (lay siege to) Shettar to force him to return to Bangalore.

Later, Udasi, Karandlaje and 11 other legislators met Governor HR Bhardwaj and briefed him of the Speaker not being present to receive their resignation letters though he had been “informed” about it.

“We gave copies of our resignation letters to the Governor and briefed him about the developments. We requested him to take action according to the constitutional provisions,” Udasi told reporters outside the Raj Bhavan. Udasi and the legislators, who are quitting the Assembly, will join the KJP to strengthen it ahead of the Assembly elections in May.

Yeddyurappa quit the BJP and the Assembly on November 30, 2012, to lead the KJP as he was not made the state BJP chief. He was forced out of the chief minister’s post in July 2011 over mining bribery charges. He launched his party, KJP, on December 9, 2012, at Haveri.